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Friday, December 9, 2016

“The
Mighty Oak and Me is
inspired by a real 300-year-old oak tree in Mr. Pish’s backyard.
The tree constantly revealed different wildlife and wonders with
every new day. Discover the magic of the Mighty Oak and the value of
all trees, with the charming and adorable traveling terrier as your
tour guide. Come celebrate this amazing tree and its many lessons in
The Mighty Oak and Me.”

Author:

K.S.
Brooks has written numerous books in multiple genres including
romantic suspense, satire, and educationally oriented children’s
books. She is administrator of Indies Unlimited (a multi-author blog
“celebrating independent authors”), where you can often catch her
pontificating on matters of interest to both readers and authors. For
more, visit Brooks’ Mr. Pish’s webpage or follow Mr. Pish on Facebook.

Appraisal:

Mr.
Pish always makes learning fun. Educational facts are shared about a
three hundred year-old oak tree in Mr. Pish’s yard. From the
history a tree that old has experienced to the wildlife that live
within its branches. The anatomy of the tree is discussed, from the
leaves all the way down to the roots and the purpose they serve. Ms.
Brooks uses Mr. Pish’s childlike zest for life to make learning
science fun for kids of all ages. Also included with this book is a
worksheet with multiple choice questions to answer along with other
thought provoking questions. This worksheet is also available to
download free on Mr. Pish’s website. Don’t miss out on any of Mr.
Pish’s fun, educational books.

Thursday, December 8, 2016

A
post-electoral dystopia blues, Burning
Down the House describes
the future breakdown of a once great nation following the rise of a
tiny-fingered snake oil salesman.”

Author:

Born
in Liverpool, also the birthplace of The Beatles, Evangeline Jennings
now lives in Texas. After contributing and editing a slew of short
story collections, she wrote Burning
Down the House, her first
novel. A fan and connoisseur of popular music, you can be confident
she knows her book shares a title with one of the biggest hits from
the Talking Heads.

Appraisal:

According
to Wikipedia the dystopian genre is “the portrayal of a setting
that completely disagrees with the author's ethos.” Typically the
story will imagine a political or cultural direction someone proposes
and picture the slide down a slippery slope to disaster. Not
mentioned, but I think a logical conclusion, is that the reader's
“ethos” being similar to the author's is going to increase the
odds of the reader viewing the book as a good read or making a good
point.

When I
started reading Burning
Down the House it was
before the election. The possibility of “a tiny-fingered snake oil
salesman” being elected President of the United States was still
just a bad dream. (Yeah, I'm definitely in the target audience for
this book.) By the time I finished, the bad dream had come true. That
post-election perspective is the one all readers going forward will
be viewing the story from, so that's the one I'll talk about.

Dystopias
aren't pretty and Ms. Jennings has done an excellent job of imagining
how ugly the country could become if the tiny-fingered tyrant of her
story did everything his real life equivalent has implied,
threatened, or suggested. A wild ride down the slippery slope later
and very few are left happy. There are a lot of characters with
different story threads for each and the only thing tying them
together is the changes happening in their country. At times this
challenged my memory (who is this again? Where did we leave them
last?) but I managed.

Luckily
I was able to remember that this is fiction. Slippery slope arguments
are fallacious. This could never happen, right? Oh my gosh, I hope
not.

Wednesday, December 7, 2016

A
tsunami hits Japan knocking out a nuclear reactor and putting
thousands of lives in jeopardy. An earthquake rips through Istanbul,
Turkey, leveling the city. And CERN’s Large Hadron Collider (LHC)
is about to discover the Higgs boson or God Particle.

Author:

Daniel
Danser has worn many hats during his thirty-two year career. Fresh
out of college he worked as a reporter for the Manchester Evening
News, developed computer platforms for IBM, and when the Internet
arrived on the scene, Danser became a web entrepreneur. Today, he’s
a freelance writer with the exciting thriller, The
God Particle, as his
first novel.

Author
Daniel Danser expertly knits recent historical events into a sci-fi
thriller that will keep readers at the edge of their seats. Professor
Tom Halligan has just been given the job of a lifetime—Director
General of Cern’s LHC. Soon after arriving in Geneva, Switzerland
Tom swiftly makes friends and enemies as he uncovers a plot that
could mean the end of the world as we know it. The
God Particle is a must
read for all sci-fi thriller fans.

Tuesday, December 6, 2016

“In
1970s Buenos Aires, with the city under military occupation, people
disappear at a terrifying rate. They are the desaparecidos,
those who vanish forever.

Camouflaged
by the ongoing crisis, someone abducts young adults for another goal.
These desaparecidos are used to create a compliant,
easily-manipulated population.

Lucas
and Vera Freund are among those abducted. The young couple—both
brilliant scientists—have stumbled onto a discovery that could
change humanity forever. To shield their work from those who would
abuse it, they’re willing to make the ultimate sacrifice. Years
later, Frances Fons and Julian Haller meet in Zurich. They know
nothing of the horrors that transpired in Argentina.”

Author:

The is
Julia Starling's first book: Against
the Oaks of Bashan.
Starling “is a medical doctor and psychotherapist. Born and raised
in Buenos Aires, Argentina, she spent five years in the UK finishing
her clinical studies and then moved to California to complete her
psychotherapy training. She currently lives in Northern New Mexico
with her husband.”

Appraisal:

The
Oaks of Bashan
opens wonderfully, with an ingrown biblical ceremony of contrition,
complete with gargoyle-like incantations. It fits neatly with the
book’s title, the allusion to Bashan, a terrible battleground in
the Book of Genesis that remains a terrible battleground today, the
Golan Heights between Syria and Israel. And, to my delight, the next
chapter of the Oaks
leaped across time to land among the preparations for a sulfurous
lawn party. Wonderful. But just as I reached for the petit fours, I
stumbled over the first of many leaf piles of impassable adjectives.

The
Oak’s descriptions
got told and elaborated upon and tormented until they betrayed more
than they revealed. “People marveled at her ability to create the
most exquisitely delicate tastes, to tap into pleasures of times
gone—and often speculated on the intriguing juxtaposition of the
seemingly earthy predisposition, this almost peasant-like simplicity,
with the perfumed air of French aristocracy that emanated from her
indifferent, icy urban demeanor.”

And
so on. What started with two moody chapters intimating an era of
political horrors fell down the rabbit hole of melodrama. Where
there was the appearance of story development, it clogged with
flummery that failed to drive the story forward. No single scene
gained purchase enough to mount the rungs on the ladder of suspense.
Language substituted for action. Pronouns quailed for antecedents,
and adjectives turned on each other with the noble aim of contrast
but succumbed to conflict. “A peasant-like simplicity” crashed
against “the perfumed air of French aristocracy,” which was then
mugged by the chef’s “icy, urban demeanor.” Contrast? Yes.
Laborious? Yes. Rule: No fifty-word sentence about a victimized wife
whose foodie talents grow byzantine should go unedited.

Against
the Oakes of Bashan had
so much going for it when it began, but its trees never grew into a
forest; maybe it was all those leaf piles. What was advertised as a
tale of Argentina’s political horrors driven by the turbines of
sci-fi doom has its possibilities. But the author’s work was felled
by its own axe. Too bad. It all started so well.

The
reader would do well to know some Spanish, or take classes. Where, in
some works, the use of foreign terms piques a description, the use of
Spanish nouns, possibly Argentine idioms, in this book, lost me.

Monday, December 5, 2016

"Cast
into this world after the death of his parents, young Marius
Besshaven seeks the truth about his mother’s past, about his own
identity. Cryptic messages in unlikely places, the fractured memories
of unreliable survivors, the haunting voices of ghosts--from these
elements Marius will have to piece together his family’s history.
And what will become of him? Will he find ruin, like so many who came
before him? Will he find resolution? Or will the curse continue?"

Author:

"Ray
Stickle is the author ofThe
Footnotes,Ruin's
Wasteful Entrance,
andStay,
Illusion.
He graduated from Ohio State University with a degree in history. He
lived and taught in South Korea for four years, returning to his home
in Ohio in 2006 to finish a master's degree. He currently lives in
Ohio with his wife and sons."

This
is a book of several genres - gothic, family saga, mystery - all
wrapped up in the story of the main character, 14 year old Marius
Besshaven (terrific name). After the death of his parents, Marius is
suddenly transported to an unknown uncle's house, a place of silence
and secrets, some dating back to the Second World War. He has to
navigate this strange world alone until he makes friends with Flora,
the housekeeper's grandaughter. He meets a taciturn gardener in the
grounds, Ben, who chases him away from a locked garden. And he has a
tutor, Mr Charles, who seems to know something but no one will answer
questions about his parents, his uncle, or his grandparents.

There
is a family tree on the first page of this book which is always good
to see and promises an engrossing tale. From the beginning there are
echoes from the classics: The Secret Garden, Heidi, and Jane Eyre
also comes to mind:

“And
then there was the scream. Far distant in the house. High. Piercing.
Once and then gone."

When
we first meet Marius, we find him self-contained, self-possessed,
holding himself at a distance from the world, concentrating on his
plants and his favourite science fiction books. He has become used to
looking after himself. Adults generally find him direct, almost
confrontational. He didn't know his parents very well; they treated
him coldly when they were alive and he felt no grief when they died.
When he meets his uncle, he is afraid of him but fear doesn't keep
him from pursuing the truth with courage and tenacity.

A day
comes when Marius needs new shoes; Flora drives him into town and it
is a shock to find the modern world continuing as normal away from
his uncle's house. You forget, as you read, that the first question
Marius asked when he arrived was about the internet connection:

"Leaving the estate for the
first time felt strange, as if we passed a magical barrier when we
turned onto the narrow lane . . . "

The
writing in this book is lyrical in places and there are lines to read
and read again:

And
there's a wonderful library in the house extending to two floors and
furnished with a ladder which the reader can see clearly, and smell
too, the wood and the leather. But the reader is always aware of the
darkness hanging around the house and family. There is death and
spilt blood in this book, and characters with empty souls and hearts:

"The
sound of the orchestra shivering its way through the walls. Enough
sound to bury her initial scream? . . . and the blood spilled and
saturated the carpet and filled the air with the scent of iron and
the scent of the burial pits, those gaping hungry mouths . . . "

The
narrative drive is so good in this book you could read it in one
sitting. The characters are believable and layered and the writing is
delicate and brutal where delicacy and brutality are called for.

A
great story altogether and readers will be happy to know there is a
second Marius Besshaven book available.

Friday, December 2, 2016

“When
Sean Hudson arrives to claim his new daughter, he discovers the
adoption hinges on the impossible. Unless he finds a wife
immediately, the tiny orphan will be snatched away from him forever.
But before Sean can abandon hope, a beautiful stranger proposes a
surprising solution — marriage.

Sean
swears the love in his heart is only for his soon-to-be daughter. And
that is perfect for Nicki Willis, whose restless spirit yearns to
have a family for just a while. But the tenderness of Sean’s touch
soothes Nicki’s fears as well as little Sona’s. Now Nicki aches
to become a family forever… and she refuses to believe she can’t
make this dream come true.”

Author:

“Donna
Fasano is a three time winner of the HOLT Medallion, a CataRomance
Reviewers Choice Award winner for Best Single Title, a Desert Rose
Golden Quill Award finalist, and a Golden Heart finalist. Her books
have sold over 3.6 million copies worldwide and have been published
in nearly two dozen languages.”

Her
novels have also made the Kindle Top 100 Paid List numerous times. To
learn more please check out her website and Facebook page.

Appraisal:

I am
always amazed at Ms. Fasano’s deep understanding of emotions
involved in developing relationships. It didn’t take long for me to
be drawn into both Sean Hudson’s and Nicki Willis’ dilemma. Both
characters were hampered by past events neither could get past.

Baby
Sona’s, an orphaned infant in war-torn Kyrcznovia, wellbeing is the
driving force that brings Sean and Nicki together. Without Nicki,
Sean can’t adopt Sona and Nicki happens to be in need of immediate
employment so she offers her services to Sean. This seems like a good
plan, however neither considered the emotional toll this might take
on both of them.

This
plot is well paced and realistic. The chemistry between Sean and
Nicki is smoldering, a fire neither one of them allows to take flame.
I felt for both, not knowing the past that led them to their
decisions to stay apart. Their journey is heart-wrenching as they
must face the past that has brought them to this point in their
lives. Ms. Fasano has a way of exposing the human condition of
relationships like no other romance author I have ever read. She is
able to rip open emotional scars and apply a soothing salve that
brings forth healing.

A
Beautiful Stranger is a
captivating story that will grab your heart. Baby Sona is perfectly
captured as a loving eighteen-month old. Babies are amazing at that
age as they learn and explore their world. Sean’s experiences as a
new father are priceless and perfectly captured. Nicki is able to
offer a wise influence in both of their lives. Sean and Nicki’s
rapport will heat your loins while managing to remain in the clean
wholesome genre. I like my romances with a bit of spice, however Ms.
Fasano managed to not disappoint me with her wordsmith magic. Well
done, ma’am.

Thursday, December 1, 2016

Only
days ago, Will Brown’s wife and three-year-old daughter were killed
in a freak road accident—both of them wiped out instantly. Soon
after the funerals, living in his marital home in Midland, lower
Michigan, wrecked with grief, and surrounded by in-laws, friends, and
well-wishers who don’t know what the hell to say to him, Will has a
brain fart and decides to run . . . to a remote cabin in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula.

Author:

Dan
Cardinal was born and raised in northern Wisconsin. He double-majored
in English and Computer Science at UW Madison and lives in his home
town with his wonderful wife and three lovely children.

Gosh,
this is a terrific story. Let’s get the mechanics out of the way
first--tight writing, clean editing, engaging and compelling scene
setting. Yeah, well, those things may sound trite, but they certainly
help a story along--Mr. Cardinal is a hell of a writer.

But
it’s the characters, Will and his supporting cast, that make this a
great story. They all felt real to me: his concerned father, his
understanding boss, and most of all the locals in the tiny town
situated a two hour hike from his cabin.

I know
nothing about black bears or living in remote, cold places in the far
north of America. Nor do I ever want to shoot a deer and field dress
it, but I trembled along with Will as he waited for the big buck to
shift into his sights. My heart raced when I wondered if the momma
bear protecting her cubs, or Will, would win in their battle of wits
and survival. I loved his dog, Max, as much as Will did.

Most
of all, I felt Will’s heartache at the loss of his wife and child.
I joined in his journey and agreed with his unorthodox recipe for
curing a broken heart. Running away to the middle of nowhere seemed
logical. The tiny cabin into which he poured his energies
provided--through his physical endeavor--focus, a solace if you will.
His father, although concerned when his only son ran from a good job
and a steady existence, still supported him, and in a personal way
empathized because he’d too lost his wife too soon.

And
then the locals: a few scraped a decent living from tourists in the
summer and full-timers in the winter. But many others, like Will, had
cut themselves off from the ‘real world’ for personal reasons and
became so married to the isolation that, like frantic beasts caught
in tar sand, they were no longer able to extract themselves.

Would
Will end up like them, unable to leave? Would his life become so
inwardly focused on surviving the tough winters, and alcohol, and
solitude, that he’d die alone and full of regrets like Lars
Jackson. Or could he grasp onto a woman’s love like a lifeline and
trust her enough to help him overcome his inner demons and break
away? Could Will become a new person, a good person, a better person?

Well,
if you’re interested in finding out. I suggest you read the story
for yourself. I don’t think you’ll be disappointed.

Wednesday, November 30, 2016

“There
are eight settlers on Mars until the colony's psychologist walks out
an airlock to die on the cold, airless sands. Emma and her crewmates,
the next mission of settlers, launch from Spaceport America despite
the tragedy and despite their own misgivings. They take a tabby
kitten with them, as requested by the survivors on Mars, and hope to
revive the shocked colony.”

Author:

“Kate
Rauner (Hanover, New Mexico, USA) writes science fiction novels and
science poetry and serves as a volunteer firefighter. Kate is a
retired engineer and Cold War Warrior--she worked in America's
nuclear weapons complex. Living on the edge of the Southwest’s Gila
National Forest with her husband, cats, llamas, and dog, she’s well
on her way to achieving her life-goal of becoming an eccentric old
woman.”

Appraisal:

As a
young man, I’d have jumped at the chance to sign up for a one-way
ticket to Mars, so this book fitted right in my wheelhouse. I
particularly enjoyed the opening chapters, which started at the
Earth-side preparation station with potential travelers confined for
two years in a modular habitat that simulated the conditions they
would encounter on Mars. Better to discover claustrophobic tendencies
and personality clashes before takeoff, right?

Once
on Mars, though, the story meandered and got bogged down in the
day-to-day minutia of the settlers. I understand that living in an
artificially maintained environment on a planet with no atmosphere
would involve a lot of chores and attention to detail, but the
activities became repetitive in the extreme. So much so, that the
plot and characters became secondary. Moments of tension were few and
too easily resolved. Potential conflicts were hinted at, but not
fully realized.

And
the cat? Well the cat made it onto the book’s cover but didn’t
have any significance. That red-herring niggled at me most of the way
through.

IMO,
assuming the technical details are accurate (and they seemed to be,
which is all that really matters for disbelief suspension, right?),
this could be turned into an engaging story if it underwent a content
edit.

Tuesday, November 29, 2016

“Cass
Adams is crazy, and everyone in Deacon, Kansas, knows it. But when
her good-for-nothing husband, Roland, goes missing, no one suspects
that Cass buried him in their unfinished koi pond. Too bad he doesn’t
stay there for long. Cass gets arrested on the banks of the Spring
River for dumping his corpse after heavy rain partially unearths it.

The
police chief wants a quick verdict—he’s running for sheriff and
has no time for crazy talk. But like Roland’s corpse, secrets start
to surface, and they bring more to light than anybody expected.
Everyone in Cass’s life thinks they know her—her psychic
grandmother, her promiscuous ex-best friend, her worm-farming
brother-in-law, and maybe even her local ghost. But after years of
separate silences, no one knows the whole truth. Except Roland. And
he’s not talking.”

Author:

“Kelly
Stone Gamble was born and raised in the Midwest… all over the
Midwest. By the time she graduated from high school, she had run away
from home twice and attended twenty-two different schools.”

There
was a lot of dark humor in this twisted tale that could have taken
place in any small town. The story exposes some serious issues of
mental illnesses being improperly medicated by doctors who treat
beyond their expertise. Cass lived her days in a fog and the best
decision she ever made was dumping her pills down the toilet on that
fateful day. Crazy ran in her family. When Cass was five, her mother
committed suicide. Cass and her nine-year-old sister, Lola, were left
in the care of their grandparents. Their grandma Babe was known for
making potions, reading auras, and told fortunes with tarot cards.
She was considered the town witch.

This
story is told through multiple points of view that are clearly marked
in each chapter heading. Each character rang true as they told us
their perspective of the events as they unfolded. I could feel the
sheriff’s frustration, and had to giggle as Cass’s big city
lawyer put his spin on the situation. Small town secrets always have
a way of coming to light, much to Maryanne’s dismay. The local
fifth grade teacher has several secrets of her own and is expertly
woven into Cass’s, Roland’s, and Clay’s lives. Clay was
Roland’s older brother who after being discharged from the army
after two years’ service, now spends his time with his worm farm
when not working at the local hardware store. To say this town has
colorful residents is an understatement.

I
found this an entertaining read that pulled me in and kept me reading
till my eyes wouldn’t stay open any longer. The setting of this
book happens to be relatively close to where I live, so I could
identify with the people, the problems that they dealt with, and
situations that arose a little too easily. I appreciated the fact
that Cass attempts to take full responsibility for herself instead of
playing the crazy card and she doesn’t see herself as a victim.
This was a well told story that left me with a smile on my face.

Monday, November 28, 2016

Editor's note: We conclude our multi-part review of this box set with part 7.

Genre:
Romance/Christmas/Box set

Description:

“Put
a song in your heart with 20 all-new Christmas Romances from NY
Times, USA Today, and national best-selling authors. Each brand-new
title is inspired by a Christmas carol and will lift your spirits and
bring on the holiday cheer.”

Little
Drummer Boy by
Dani Haviland - How could
a mere drummer boy help those stranded in the worst winter storm of
the 18th century?

Santa
Claus is Coming to Town
by Cynthia Cooke - A big
city girl reunites with a small town boy--magic. A Santa in need of
an elf--Christmas magic.

Author:

Katy
Walters, “lives in the
midst of Regency towns on the South Coast of England. Being of Welsh
and Irish parentage, her novels tend towards Celtic themes. Her main
interests are historical and regency romance with an underlying theme
of time travel. She is equally drawn to the paranormal myths of the
Dark Ages, the pre-medieval era, where the ancient Britons were known
as the People of the Trees…

Katy’s
enjoyed an eclectic career, delighting in every one of her
occupations. On leaving school, the office beckoned and became her
prison, one she managed to escape taking up operatic singing… Later
on returning to university, Katy went on to enjoy a long and rich
career as a research psychologist, psychotherapist and
hypnotherapist… But then her first love, writing, beckoned, and she
was in a position to write to her heart’s content. It was a dream
come true when Amazon opened up the doors to publishing.”

“Dani
Haviland, a Mayflower and
Mormon pioneer descendant, recently semi-retired from selling tractor
parts, tools, and roses in Alaska, relocating to a more temperate
climate in western Oregon to pursue her passions: writing, gardening,
and photography.

Life
has changed from jumping into a skid-steer loader to plow snow to
pull-starting the walk behind weed whacker, but there are still
enough hours in the day for the feisty old lady to propagate people
for her novels and plants for her yard. Sharing is part of her
personality, so creating books and photos to share all over the world
makes her happy.”

Cynthia
Cooke, “First published
in 2003, Cynthia Cooke is an award-winning author who has published
17 novels in 12 different countries with Harlequin, Entangled, and
Amazon Kindle Worlds. She has a deep affection for romance stories
and playing in the ocean. On her best days you can find her on the
beach with her notebook, a novel in hand, and her dog, Angel, by her
side.”

IIn
this seventh and final group of novellas from Love,
Christmas I am reviewing
more new-to-me authors.

Sleigh
Ride by Katy
Walters:

Tragedy
hit the Vale family several years ago when the Reverend Stuart Vale
succumbed to yellow fever, along with two of his three sons. This
left Lady Vale to raise six daughters and a son on her own. Baron
Jude Hawsley, a lecher with a penchant for young maidens, has allowed
the Vales to continue living in a cottage on his property. The Baron
has now set his sights on Sophia, the oldest Vale daughter. Sophia is
strong-willed, able-bodied, and realistic. However she is totally
taken with the Earl of Breconbridge -Lord
Jacob Wells - despite the debauchery involved during their first
meeting. Sleigh Ride
is a sweet romance in which Lord Jacob has to go to great lengths to
prove to Sophia’s mother that he is not a rakehell.

I
identified too many proofing issues in this novella. First and
foremost is the Reverend’s first name was Stuart and he was only
referred to as Thomas once. However, it is confusing to the reader
when the author can’t keep their character’s name straight.
Another large concern was the use or misuse of quotation marks; they
were either half missing or on the wrong passages. I have to call it
sloppy editing and deducted a star.

Not
only is Ms. Walters a new-to-me-author, but I now have to wonder if I
have ever read any Regency romance other than Pride
and Prejudice. I would
have found the restrictions placed on women and the language used
almost comical, if they hadn’t been so restrictive. Sleigh
Ride is an enjoyable
story, with comical moments, if you are willing to tolerate the
proofing issues.

Little
Drummer Boy by
Dani Haviland:

At
only thirteen years of age, Scout is on his own. Son of a Cherokee
mother and an absentee white, wannabe-Indian father, Ian Kincaid, he
is searching for employment as a scout in the North Carolina
backwoods. When he comes across a small group of soldiers trying to
build a bridge across the river, he offers to guide them to an easier
place to cross in exchange for employment pay as a scout. The year is
1784, it’s the month of December, and black clouds are moving in as
they set up camp on the far side of the river.

I
discovered reading this novella that Scout and others in this story
are from a series titled The
Fairies Saga; the first
book is Naked in the
Winter Wind. Being such,
there are many characters mentioned who don’t get much screen play.
I am sure they were there for readers who were already familiar with
the series. However, it got a bit confusing trying to keep them all
straight for me.

Scout
is a smart, interesting character and I enjoyed learning about him
and his many talents. The book is told through different
points-of-view, so we got to know Scout and about his wayward father.
Family relationships and bonds are explored as extended family is
introduced. This novella doesn’t tell us how fairies are involved,
unless Jenny turns out to be one. She and Scout have a special
relationship. Jenny is the adopted daughter of Ian’s first,
handfast wife Evie, who he also abandoned when he learned she was
pregnant.

Since
this seems to be Scout’s first Christmas, stories are shared to
educate him in Christmas traditions of this time in early America.
Little Drummer Boy
is an enjoyable read.

Santa
Claus is Coming to Town
by Cynthia Cooke:

Nicole
Flattery hasn’t been home in four years since she graduated college. She
moved to Boston to build her career as an architect and she’s
moving up the ladder to success. When her father, Frank, falls from a
ladder putting up Christmas lights and breaks his leg and sprains his
arm, Nicole packs up her files and heads home to assist her father.

Frank
has been the town’s Santa since before Nicole was born and when he
is unable to fulfill that obligation this year he talks his
neighbor’s divorced son, Landry Parsons, into filling in for him.
Landry’s six-year-old daughter, Kimmie, is beside herself with glee
because she gets to be Santa’s elf. Nicole has lost her Christmas
spirit over the years she has been away and worries about her dad’s
sanity with his obsession about Christmas. Landry’s mother, Mary
Margaret, has been taking the pictures since Nicole left for school
and then work. However, this year her whole family is coming into
town and she just can’t manage it. Against Nicole’s wishes but at
her father insistence, she takes over the photo gig again. I call
parents’ manipulation here, and I think you will too.

In the
meantime, Kimmie vows to help Nicole find the Christmas magic she
lost years ago. That’s a tall order for a six-year old but she is
up to the challenge and of course the chemistry between her father
and Nicole helps quite a bit. The twists in this novella aren’t
surprising but things get tense and a bit unnerving. This is an
endearing story about priorities, being truthful with oneself, and
surrendering to passion. Santa
Claus is Coming to Town
will leave you with a smile on your face and a song in your heart.

The
stories in Love, Christmas
are new and never before published. Two of these novellas can be
classified as Clean and Wholesome stories. Santa
Claus is Coming to Town has
a couple of sexual scenes not behind closed doors.

Format/Typo
Issues:

Sleigh
Ride by Katy
Walters: I found way too
many proofing errors and had to deduct a star.

Little
Drummer Boy by
Dani Haviland: No
proofing issues.

Santa
Claus is Coming to Town
by Cynthia Cooke: No
significant proofing issues.

Rating:
Sleigh Ride
by Katy Walters: *** Three Stars

Rating:
Little Drummer Boy
by Dani Haviland: **** Four Stars

Rating:
Santa Claus is
Coming to Town by
Cynthia Cooke: ***** Five Stars

Reviewed
by: ?wazithinkin

Approximate
word count: 375-400,000
words for the full set. Each story is novella size, 20,000 words or
slightly less.

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